Original subtitles

Hey.

Who's out here?

Go, catch it. Catch it.

Now catch this one, stupid.

Please, Chuck. It's getting so dark, I can't.

It's over by the fence.

Of all the lousy outfielders!

Didn't you ever play baseball before?

Hey, hurry up before my mom starts yelling, will you?

Look for it!

Miles? Where are you? Miles!

Well, where'd you go?

It's right around here some place.

Kid?

Miles?

If you stole that ball, hear me, kid,

you'll get chased out of this

town so fast, you won't even... Here.

Why didn't you yell?

Can't you do anything right?

Hey, what you been doing out here?

I got better things to do than chase your ol' ball.

Well, what do you want me to do, give it to you?

I already gave you my mitt, didn't I?

Listen, Miles, there's no point in you hitting any

until you learn how to catch, see?

You got to know something about something before you can...

I know something what you guys don't know. Listen, Chuck...

Kid, why do you always act so people want to hit you?

Charles!

- You're lucky. - Charles!

You don't even have a ma to yell at you.

Chuck, I do know something...

You come home this instant!

If you promise not to tell anybody else.

Charles!

Yeah, your mom sure is a big foghorn, isn't she?

Please, Chuck. It'll only take a second.

I know a secret that...

Who cares what you know, stupid?

Miles, that's the doorbell.

Would you answer it, please?

All you have to do is let him in, you...

I thought you were watching TV.

I'm sorry, Aunt Syl.

Honey, if you're gonna stay here with us,

you're gonna have to stop saying you're sorry all the time.

Excuse me.

Well, I mean, you don't have to watch it, you know,

but... but till my brother gets back from the bowling alley...

I'm sorry, Aunt Syl.

Honey, just go on, answer the door, will you?

I'll be right there, Bill. Just a second.

Hello, son.

I think you better tell your mother...

She's not my mother.

She's not even my real aunt.

I don't even have to live here if I don't want to.

You can come in, I guess.

Where do you live?

Where is your mother?

I don't know, but I've got four of 'em some place. I really do.

Oh, excuse me.

I didn't realize... Miles, run along.

Mrs. Thompson, my name is Mason.

I was having dinner with Mr. Downing.

Oh, of course, Mr. Mason.

You're, uh, spending the night

at his country place, aren't you?

Won't you come in and sit down?

Joe said you would be expecting Bill Sheridan

and might be worried.

Joe needs you at the trucking office.

He thought we'd save time if I stopped to, uh, explain.

Well, what's the matter? What happened?

Miles, will you please go watch TV?

Now, don't be alarmed, but the police called.

There's been a shooting.

Your office was just robbed.

Mr. Dillon.

Chester.

Good night, Miles.

Your Uncle Flick will be home. Don't worry.

Hey, uh, think I'll get bit if I sit down here, Doc?

Well, you're taking quite a chance, I'll tell you that.

How long has this been going on?

Oh, this is just the second time...

Look, I wasn't shot. I'm all right.

The doctor should have stayed here.

For what? For a bump on the head?

That's all it was. I was out for a couple of minutes.

I'm just sorry I loused up our date, that's all.

Bill, don't be ridiculous.

Mrs. Thompson, will you help the sergeant there?

Take a look in that safe.

I want to know exactly what's missing here.

Of course, Mr. Downing.

Don't pick on her, Joe. She likes me.

Bill, tell Mr. Mason here now just what you told me.

I stopped by here to do a little work.

What with all the, uh, big brass descending on us in the morning,

I thought it might be a good idea

to make sure the, uh, ashtrays were clean.

You've, uh, managed this branch office

for quite some time, I take it?

Los Angeles, huh?

It's got suburbs on the moon.

You see, I thought my dear cousin Joey here

was being a great benefactor when he handed me this job.

Actually, Perry, it's been less than a year

because my partner, Frank Honer, was setting up this yard

to service our Arizona traffic,

while I was up in Oregon building that branch.

And now they have their own building on Wilshire Boulevard,

where the lucky people work.

No sagebrush, no, uh...

Bill, you're wasting our time.

He doesn't care about that.

Sure, Joe. Okay.

I was, uh, sitting at that desk.

Now, I had opened the safe to check on some things.

The lights were on, Mr. Sheridan?

Well, of course the lights were on.

Go on, Mr. Sheridan.

That's about all there is.

I was sitting at the desk,

I didn't even hear the door open.

The next thing I know, I'm on the floor.

You positive you never heard a shot?

Yes, I am positive.

This slug only missed you a foot or two, maybe.

Where did you find that slug?

I dug it out of the floor there.

What do you figure, Mrs. Thompson? How much?

Uh, well, there was $3,400 in the driver's expense fund,

$600 plus in petty cash.

It totals $4,061 that's missing.

Not a bad haul.

Oh, well, it could have been much worse.

You know, we sometimes have payroll

and... and, uh, shipping deposits in cash.

So, the thief didn't know your routine here.

As for this,

maybe he slugged you with his gun, and it went off.

You wouldn't have heard.

Several explanations, and they all add up

- to simple robbery. - Was anything else taken?

I don't think so.

Those, uh, pile of papers are probably all messed up

because the money's at the bottom, don't you think?

I could sit down and check.

No, never mind. We'll let Harry lock up now.

I'll have Miss Frances out from town

to check the records with me the first thing in the morning.

Good night, everybody.

Joe? Joe?

What's the matter?

Don't you think this was a simple robbery?

No, Perry, I don't.

Here's a late item from the sheriff substation.

The local office of the Honer and Downing

Trucking Company was robbed tonight.

Several thousand dollars

were taken from the office safe by an assailant

who apparently broke into the building

about 8:00 this evening.

Branch manager of the trucking company...

Uncle, is that you?

Mr. Bill Sheridan has reportedly

slipped into unconsciousness...

You still awake? What's the big idea?

- It's almost 11:00. - Wait.

Over $4,000.

The robber was reported as armed

with a .38-caliber pistol,

which he fired once, fortunately without effect.

The man fled hurriedly,

and police suggest he may be frightened and dangerous...

Uncle Flick, don't!

Didn't you hear?

Aunt Syl's office was robbed.

Sure, and somebody got knocked out.

And they stole thousands and thousands of dollars.

You get to bed!

But it's true. There's a man came here

a long time ago, and he took Aunt Syl.

You want my sister coming home and finding you downstairs?

You know how upset she's been ever since you've been here.

But, Uncle Flick, I want to tell you something.

Me and Chuck was playing baseball...

I said, go to bed, you little... Go on!

That's a good boy.

And don't worry.

Tomorrow, I'll let you watch me play pool

like I promised, okay?

Cal-i-ber... th-thirty-eight.

Uncle Flick.

Flick? Where are you, Flick?

He's probably in the kitchen, sopping up the beer.

No, the light would be on.

I got to go upstairs and check on Miles.

Honey, when are you gonna get rid of that kid?

I mean, children are all right, but he's such a nuisance to you.

I mean, ever since he's been here... Mmm.

My brother's still bowling.

I'll be down in a minute, Bill.

♪♪

Good afternoon.

Hello.

I'm Honer, Frank Honer.

Oh, uh, Mr. Downing's partner, the trucking company?

That's right.

I just got in from San Francisco

and there was a message telling me

that our little get-together has been called off.

Now, Joe's up in the desert,

Miss Frances, our chief accountant,

is apparently up there with him,

so, me, I'd just like to know what's going on.

- Hello, Mr. Honer. - Mr. Mason.

You were up at Joe's last night, weren't you?

I guess you want to hear about the robbery.

I was just getting a report from Mr. Drake.

Oh, I'm not interested in that.

We're insured. Who cares about that?

Mr. Mason, Joe told me he wanted to get together

and have an inspection tour of all our branch offices, right?

He said he had a real hot offer to sell

and that after we looked things over,

we'd sit down and talk, right?

That's why Joe called me in.

National Trucking's very interested

in buying your company,

and Joe wanted private legal advice in case of a sale.

Well, maybe I'm not too eager to sell yet.

Tell me something, is Joe being a fussbudget about this robbery?

Is that why we can't sit down and talk right now?

I really don't know his reasons for delaying, Mr. Honer.

He just suggested I come back to town for a day.

Did he, uh, happen to mention

a worthless cousin by the name of Bill Sheridan?

By any chance would this have anything to do with him?

The way Bill's been running things out there, maybe.

Joe's your partner.

Why don't you wait and ask him?

I won't have to now.

Thank you, Mr. Mason.

Oh, and, uh, don't worry, I won't ask Joe.

If he's uncovered a private hornet's nest,

I guess he can take care of it.

Let's here the rest of your report, Paul.

Full name, Miles Jefferson.

Dependent child of the court since he was six months old.

Compton Orphanage, three years,

then a series of foster homes.

So that's how the boy acquired four mothers.

Yeah, and bad luck on all of them, I guess.

Anyway, several weeks ago, a distant relative

named John Flickinger applied

and took the kid to live with him and his sister

for a while on trial.

His Uncle Flick arranged it?

Sure. Guy's out of a job,

and the state pays about 75 bucks a month child support.

And if you happen to have a softhearted widow sister

who's willing to do a little extra cooking...

A little too softhearted, maybe.

That's what Joe's worried about.

He's finding things in her books out there.

So what?

Perry, I still don't see what's important about...

Paul, wouldn't it be important to you

if you were eight years old and still hadn't found a home?

Uh, I have to run back to the office, Milesy.

You just had your lunch, you know,

so don't play on a full stomach.

All right, Aunt Syl.

Miles!

Hey, boy!

Where you been hiding all morning?

Thought you'd want to watch a little pool today.

I thought I'd rather play baseball, maybe.

Ah, you can do that anytime.

Come on, make a man out of you.

I thought I'd rather...

Ah, let's go, let's go, huh, boy?

Let's go.

Ah, you see.

Now I want to make the four ball,

but the corner's blocked by the seven,

so... Miles, you listening?

Sure, it's interesting.

Only thing better is bowling.

You know how long I bowled last night?

Four solid hours, from supper straight on.

Yes, sir, four solid hours.

I never left that bowling alley once.

What'd you do last night, kid?

Oh, I, oh, I sat in my room,

I watched TV, and I read.

You were, uh, gonna tell me something, remember?

You, uh, said something about

playing baseball with Chuck?

What about the seven ball, Uncle Flick?

Well, I must've sounded a little rough last night,

finding you up so late, I mean, or...

or maybe it was listening to that robbery thing on TV.

I don't know,

it being your Aunt Syl's office and all.

Now you kids, I suppose,

get all excited about things like that.

Go scaring each other, looking for clues,

snooping around... Come on, Miles.

Please, Uncle Flick, I want to go home

and just, just read or something.

Wouldn't you rather see that movie?

Well, sure, but it's a double bill,

and if I miss supper, Aunt Syl...

Ah, look, here, here,

here, go buy yourself a couple of candy bars.

I'll fix it with your Aunt Syl.

Don't worry so much, boy.

You run along now, I got things to do.

Go on, go on.

♪♪

Now what are you messing up that file for?

I'll tell you what I want to look at.

Miss Frances, put these with the other figures.

Yes, Mr. Downing.

Look, you must be aware that the final accounting

is done at the main office.

All I do is send in the subtotals

and the money spent by Mr. Sheridan.

You may turn on the lights.

I'm about ready to start adding this up.

Uh, Mr. Downing,

you've been kind enough to take an interest

in the little boy that my brother brought to stay with us.

Well, he won't get a bite to eat unless...

All right, go on.

We can always get you back if we need you.

Good night, Sylvia, dear, and thank you.

Bill, what's the matter with him?

Do you think he found that petty cash thing from April?

What are you talking about?

Joe's got ulcers, that's all.

When you lost that money in Las Vegas.

You balanced it on the other book, didn't you?

So... So, we made it up.

Seven hundred dollars.

Sylvia, why don't you go home and comb your hair.

There are other things, other items.

I never have had full bookkeeping out here.

There are certain things I can't explain.

You know, my case of whiskey is always missing a bottle or two?

Things happen here, so what?

I'll see you later, okay, baby?

Hey, come on, come on, let me help you with that.

You sure you won't strain yourself?

Hey, uh,

it's about time for a couple of martinis

and a nice steak, isn't it, hmm?

What about your, uh, girlfriend?

Hey, now, listen,

don't you go making remarks about my mother.

Miles?

Where are you, honey? I'll bet you're starved.

Hi, Syl.

Guess the kid isn't home yet. I just got here myself.

Well, where is he?

You could've cooked something for him.

Say, uh, Syl, uh,

I thought maybe I'd duck out for a few days.

My, uh, my back is bothering me.

Maybe a week at the Veterans Hospital.

I, uh,

I guess I better go round up the kid, huh?

For heaven's sake, yes.

You brought the poor child here, do something about him.

John, I'm sorry.

I'm sorry about your back. I'll fix you a hot bath.

Oh, no, no, no, that's okay.

I-I mean, sis, uh,

I didn't know the kid was gonna bother you so much,

and if I'd figured maybe you and Bill Sheridan

were gonna get married, I never would've...

Hello?

Yes, Miss Frances.

Well, I just barely got home.

Well, you do whatever you like, dear,

but I'm leaving.

And, uh, I thought you ought to know

that the minute Mr. Sheridan left,

Mr. Downing sent for his lawyer again,

so if I were you, I...

Look, um, uh,

I'll find the kid. I'll fix supper.

Don't you worry.

Miles?

Miles, your supper's ready.

Hey, Miles.

Hi. Remember me?

Sure, sure, hi.

Hi, Mr. Mason.

You're a little late, aren't you?

Want a lift home? It's right on my way.

All right, I guess.

Just get out of the movie?

I guess so.

What's the matter, worried you missed supper?

Maybe I can help you explain.

See, I found out quite a bit about you, Miles.

You what?

You don't mind, do you?

Come on, shut the door.

We'll talk while we drive.

Talk about what?

Oh, whatever you want to talk about,

whatever you want to tell me.

No, no, maybe I'd better walk.

Now, wait a minute, son.

Good-bye, Mr. Mason.

Son.

Come back.

Hey, wait.

Sylvia, come back.

What's the matter?

- Joe. - No, don't touch him.

Wait till I call the doctor.

He's been shot, I think.

Never mind the doctor.

Sure, barefoot's all right.

Only two blocks to my house anyway.

Do I have to play with your little girl?

Well, now, it's not that painful.

At least for a while.

See you in the morning, boy.

We'll shoot some more pool tomorrow, huh?

Wo-Won't I get locked up like Aunt Syl?

Oh, for gosh sakes, what for?

I fixed it up with the sheriff's office

so we could make things comfortable for you,

keep you here while the court decided something...

About your aunt maybe or

about where you're gonna live next maybe and...

Oh, Mr. Mason, the lieutenant already left.

I, uh, wonder if I might talk with the boy for a moment.

Well, sure, I don't see why not.

I'll go and see if I can find him slippers.

It's all right, Miles, don't be scared.

Oh, I'm not scared of you.

It's just that, well, Aunt Syl was funny sometimes.

She never said much, but then one night she kissed me.

And now she's in pretty bad trouble, isn't she?

Miles, you never had anyone really to talk to, did you?

Huh?

I guess, I guess that's one of the toughest things there is

when you're growing up...

Not having someone to talk to, to tell things to.

Mr. Mason, I don't know...

'Cause the more you hide things, the bigger they grow,

but they don't need to.

The happiest people in the world are the ones who can just,

well, open up, share everything.

Mr. Mason, I'm not,

I'm not hiding anything.

Oh, sure, at first you think, "Who do I trust?

"Another foster mother?

An aunt who doesn't really want me maybe?"

Well, I'm a lawyer, Miles,

and part of a lawyer's job is to keep secrets for people,

to never use those secrets to hurt anyone,

to try to help people when...

Hey, uh, uh, what about your toothbrush, huh, boy?

You remember your toothbrush?

Sure, Uncle Flick, I got it, see?

- Yeah. - Here are slippers, Miles.

All set?

Good night, son.

Mr. Mason, thanks for, for asking me

if I wanted a ride home from the movies yesterday.

I don't even see why I need a lawyer.

I didn't kill Mr. Downing.

But I saw you running away from there myself, Mrs. Thompson.

I went back to the office

to explain something to Mr. Downing.

There were some things he kept finding in the books.

They haven't been able to locate all the records,

but apparently those figures Joe was adding up show

that your branch has an unexplained loss this year

of nearly $50,000.

Well, now, that I can't explain.

Anyway, I didn't get a chance to say anything to him.

When I got back to the office, he, he was dead.

I guess I screamed.

I guess I heard somebody coming and I ran.

All I could think of was to run home.

And, of course, you were also thinking that Bill Sheridan,

or someone else close to you, must have killed Joe Downing.

No, no, that's not true.

At least I don't think it is.

Mr. Mason, you must think I'm innocent,

or you wouldn't be willing to help me.

Mrs. Thompson, I'm not taking your case

because I believe you are innocent.

What?

But if you are innocent, then I think one small boy deserves

every possible break he can get, don't you?

Oh, I've been so...

Well... what are we waiting for?

I'm sure you have a great many questions.

My question, sir, is this:

At what time did you so clearly

see the defendant, Sylvia Thompson,

standing over the dead body of Joe Downing?

It was exactly 8:00, sir.

I was just passing the side of the building,

and... and I looked in the window.

Did you hear anybody cry out?

Did you hear the sound of a shot, perhaps?

No, sir.

But the trucks were coming in and out,

making so much racket of their own.

Of course. I understand.

But you did say that you saw the defendant

put something in her purse.

Well, she was... she was just raising up,

j-j-just closing her purse.

Maybe I... maybe I dropped my purse.

I don't know. I don't know.

But it was 12 minutes past 8:00

when our patrol car reached the defendant's house

to apprehend her for questioning.

The officers found no gun in her possession.

But you said it takes less than two minutes

to drive from her office to her house.

8:00 to 8:12... that leaves more than ten minutes

of her time unaccounted for, doesn't it?

Yes.

On this business of disposing of a weapon, Your Honor,

I don't think it's out of line for me to say that...

there's lots of sand and wind in these parts, and anything...

Uh, Della, now is the time to make that phone call.

Do you have the subpoena?

I can recall several cases where...

I think the court will be able

to draw its own conclusions, Sergeant.

Thank you.

Cross-examine.

Uh, Sergeant, you stated that a single bullet

caused Mr. Downing's death,

and that it was fired from a .38-caliber pistol?

Correct.

Now, the night before the murder,

you recovered a bullet from the floor

which had also been fired from a .38.

- Is that correct? - It is.

I suppose you ran a comparison test on those bullets.

So, uh, tell us,

were the two bullets fired from the same gun?

Well, the first bullet smashed a nail,

so the ballistics man couldn't give

an absolute yes or no answer.

Of course, maybe if he had the gun to check with...

Your Honor, the State is not charging the defendant

with robbery, only with murder.

I think I agree, Mr. Mason.

I would like this hearing to proceed

as expeditiously as possible.

Then I have no more questions, Your Honor.

I call Mr. John Flickinger to the stand, please.

Mr. Mason said what?

He wanted you to know

that your uncle, Uncle Flick, is here now,

and he'll keep him here with something called a subpoena

for just as long as you want.

Why?

I'm not scared of...

Miles, all I know is, there's some sort of a secret

between you and Mr. Mason, isn't there?

Secret?

Yes, Miles.

About something that you might know

that could help your Aunt Sylvia.

Miles, you'd be a lot happier if you'd just tell Mr. Mason.

Please, I don't know anything.

Well, look, honey,

Mr. Mason just wanted you to have this number,

and they can call him to the phone any time.

Uh, I-I didn't know if my sister came home at 8:00 or 8:15.

I tell you, I was out looking for the kid.

But you knew the boy was at the movies, didn't you?

Well, I didn't want to tell her I knew.

I mean... I mean, uh, that I passed him the money.

I-I mean that, uh, I just walked around, that's all.

I knew he'd be home pretty quick.

- It was your sister's money, I suppose. - What?

Well, hasn't your sister been supporting you

since you were fired from your last job, your trucking job?

Well, I got this bad back, see... A service disability.

Driving a truck, you... Be careful, now.

I have information from the Veterans Hospital

that there's nothing really wrong with your back.

They also have a notation that reads

"record of malingering."

Well, you can't always tell about these bad disks.

No, you can't.

But just tell us this:

Who was it that fired you from your trucking job?

Fired you for reporting to work drunk?

It was, uh...

Mr. Downing fired me.

Yes.

I've examined the company records...

Uh, those books that Mr. Downing

was working on the night he was killed...

As thoroughly as possible, Mr. Burger.

And what was the exact shortage or loss

in last year's operation of that branch office?

The total came to just a little less than $50,000,

but that doesn't mean it's been stolen

or embezzled or anything like that.

There's no record to positively indicate

that the books have been doctored by,

say, uh, Mrs. Thompson there.

Really?

You just admitted one $700 item that you found, didn't you?

Well, that could be

very easily the transferring of monies

from one account to the other.

That's all.

How much proof do you need of embezzlement, Mr. Honer?

Your Honor...

I'll withdraw the question, Your Honor.

Did you speak to Joe Downing the day he died, Mr. Honer?

Yes, he called me in Los Angeles at about 7:30 that night.

That may well have been his last conversation with anyone.

Would you tell us what he said to you, sir?

His exact words, if you can remember them.

Well, he said that he would tell me more

about it in the morning,

but that it looked like he might have to fire Sylvia

for, as he put it, uh, "dipping into the till."

Your witness.

Now, let's get this clear, Mr. Honer.

Have either you

or the accountants that have been called in

found any clear record of actual theft?

No, we have not.

So, you'd be prepared

to write off this $50,000 loss as what,

carelessness, bad business, mismanagement?

I guess that's probably what it was.

Which, Mr. Honer?

Mismanagement.

But wouldn't mismanagement have been the fault

of someone other than the defendant?

Well, it certainly would have.

Bill Sheridan's the man in charge out there.

Why isn't there a more complete record?

Is there a possibility that more than money was stolen

the night before the murder?

Is it possible that the theft from the safe

was only a cover for the destruction of records?

Records which would have proved someone's criminal action?

I'd say that was a definite possibility.

Sylvia Thompson and I were friends, that's all.

Well, sure, I took her out a few times

in the last few months, but nothing serious.

I mean, uh, life can get pretty dull

in a place like that and...

But she did help you out

with a gambling debt once or twice, didn't you say that?

Yes, yes, and I'll be the first to admit that,

and blame myself, too.

And she did this

by manipulating your office accounts?

Oh, come on, there's nothing wrong with that.

You heard what Mr. Honer said.

Then why didn't you do it yourself, Mr. Sheridan?

If you were the man in charge?

If the funds were available to you?

Well, uh, frankly, I wouldn't have known how.

You don't know anything about bookkeeping, Mr. Sheridan?

No.

No, I'm afraid I don't even know how to work an adding machine.

No, I couldn't juggle an expense account

any more than I could juggle a... an elephant.

♪♪

Mr. Sheridan, you testified

that you left the office around 7:00.

Look, how many times do I have to tell you...?

Yet, my investigator reports that you weren't, uh, located

by the police until after 9:00.

Ah. I can prove that I didn't kill Joe Downing,

if that's what you're driving at.

I was having dinner and a couple of drinks.

You're quite sure you can prove that, Mr. Sheridan?

Yes, I'm quite sure I can prove that, Mr. Mason.

If you don't believe me, you can ask her.

Yeah, ask, uh, Miss Frances.

Actually, I didn't have any drinks, but...

But just to satisfy Mr. Mason, you were with Mr. Sheridan?

I was with Mr. Sheridan.

I told you, they don't allow kids in the courtroom.

If there's something you want to give someone,

I'll, uh... Hey!

Miss Frances, you say you telephoned Miss Thompson

shortly after 7:00.

Yes. I thought it only fair that Sylvia had the chance

to explain matters to Mr. Downing

before you arrived, that's all.

Didn't you just want to get her back to the office?

I beg your pardon?

You heard the doctor testify

that the time of death is always difficult to determine.

I don't understand.

Couldn't you have killed Joe Downing?

Couldn't you have then tried to involve the defendant in...

Mr. Mason, let's get something clear right now.

I have never fired a gun in my life.

Mr. Mason!

Mr. Mason!

Let go of me! Mr. Mason, help!

Let go of me, I say!

And then I put the box under the house.

I was afraid to go near it again

'cause I was sure Uncle Flick might see me,

but then today, I went and got it,

and that's all there is, I guess.

Only I didn't think I'd have to tell it to everybody.

Well, you've done the right thing, young man.

I want to thank you.

Here it is. Thank you.

Now, uh, suppose you go in the other room

and wait for Mr. Mason, hmm?

Well, Hamilton, quite a confused case you have here.

I don't think so, Your Honor.

It's the murder gun, all right.

Has the lab test fired it?

Yes, they have, and now they're positive.

Both bullets were fired from the same gun.

There were no fingerprints, of course.

There never are.

But they also checked the box he hid it in, Perry.

All right, now, never mind.

I don't want to hear any more of this until it's evidence.

I'll go back in court and declare a recess

until tomorrow morning.

Is that what you want?

Yes. We'll clear this up fast, Your Honor.

Huh. Very well, gentlemen.

I wouldn't be too sure, Hamilton.

That boy's uncle has a lot of explaining to do.

All right, Perry.

We'll go hear what he has to say now.

But even if he did help her that night,

even if he was her accomplice,

it was Sylvia Thompson's fingerprints

they found on that shoe box.

I certainly hope you never have to explain

to those two what you made the boy do to her.

But it's the truth, Mr. Burger, same as I told your assistant.

Pitch dark it was in here.

So dark I couldn't even see my own nose.

I just come through this gate here...

Sergeant, are you sure there was absolutely no evidence

of how the thief broke into the building that night?

All right, all right,

so I borrow my sister's keys once in a while,

but I wasn't gonna steal anything.

I didn't even see the safe was open.

How could I? Black as the inside of a...

Now there's a likely story.

That safe was open for over an hour.

- I was sitting right... - Oh, no, you weren't.

Listen to me.

This thing jabs into my back, see, and I grab for it.

And this voice says, "Hands up."

And I grab for his gun,

only then we fall down and the gun goes off.

I didn't know whether I shot him or not.

Well, I run.

That's what I do. Wouldn't you?

And I didn't take a single dollar from this place.

I swear it.

He must have taken it after I left.

Him, right there.

- Bill Sheridan. - You're a liar.

- All right, break it up here. - You're a liar!

You are lying, of course.

You must have come in here to steal something.

I ain't gonna say one more word

till I get a lawyer of my own, see.

But in my mind... Abstractedly, that is...

Borrowing a bottle from a man's desk

for a little after-dinner drink just ain't grand theft.

It ain't, see.

Perry.

It looks like I made a mistake having them out here together.

Not at all.

I think they're both telling you the truth, Hamilton.

What?

Just as I think Sylvia Thompson told the truth

when she said that shoe box was empty when she handled it

half an hour before the killing.

Oh, now, look, Perry.

Maybe Flick got the gun like he said

and threw it away like he said.

And maybe the kid found it

and hid it under the house like he said.

But later on, that same gun killed Downing,

and then flew right back into the shoe box.

So, who else but Sylvia or her brother,

or the two of them in cahoots, could possibly have...

Hold it.

Well, Mr. Burger, here we are.

Hamilton, I asked you

to have Mr. Honer bring Miss Frances here

because I think everybody is telling us the truth

and probably will continue telling us the truth.

Good heavens.

What a thing to live up to.

Wait a minute.

Hamilton, if you believe

the building was dark the night that Flick entered it,

then Bill Sheridan must have already

been unconscious on the floor.

Someone else must have hit him

over the head and rifled the safe.

The same person who jabbed the gun into Flick's back,

and then lost it to him in the wrestling match in the dark.

Go on.

Well, don't you think that person

would have been pretty anxious to recover the gun?

Been afraid of fingerprints or, uh, other identification?

You mean whoever it was followed Flick,

maybe spotted him searching,

finally spotted the kid and the box?

And later that night, stole the gun back

from where the boy had hidden it.

Perry, what is this?

Miss Frances, think carefully.

Were the records out here thoroughly audited

before Bill Sheridan took over as manager last year?

No.

No, they weren't, Mr. Mason.

Now, hold on, Perry.

Will you stick to one subject, please?

That's what I'm doing,

because it's murder we're concerned with.

And hiding a $50,000 theft from your own company

is a pretty good motive.

Don't you think so, Miss Frances?

Well, yes, I suppose it is.

Allowing a bad manager to slowly mess up the business

is one way of hiding it.

Staging a phony robbery

is a quicker way to get rid of records.

Oh, now, look here, Perry, she...

But events had started moving too fast, hadn't they?

Sudden possibility of selling the company

made, uh... made Joe Downing keep on digging.

Straight to the truth.

But Mr. Downing thought that it

was Sylvia Thompson who was responsible for...

Did he?

Or did he just want to get

her part of things absolutely clear

before he accused the only person

who could have been responsible,

the man who built up this branch and ran it originally?

His own partner.

That's why I asked about the audit, Miss Frances.

Now, isn't it possible that this branch was $50,000 short

before Bill Sheridan took over?

Mr. Honer...

the day after the robbery, you let my secretary think

that you'd been in San Francisco,

but my investigator, Paul Drake, can't find any record of it.

Now...

weren't you actually out here both of those nights,

right here in this office?

Answer him, Frank.

Say something.

Answer him?

He knows I can't do that.

But I still don't understand.

How did the gun get back in the shoe box?

Well, after the murder, it occurred to Frank Honer

that if he put the gun back

where he'd found it the night before,

possibly Sylvia, and maybe Flick,

would be blamed for what he'd done.

I make such a nice patsy, don't I?

Oh, now, Sylvia... No, please.

I want you to understand, Mr. Mason.

I told my brother to go jump in the ocean.

You don't think I'm going to object to that, do you?

No, but...

well, I want you to realize that...

when a person starts feeling too sorry for herself when...

well, for what's happened to her life,

when she makes one mistake after another...

Now, Sylvia, don't tell me about Bill Sheridan.

Don't tell me about a thing.

Hi, Mr. Mason. You know what?

Never mind. Wait a minute. Let me tell him.

Perry, I'll have you know

there are exactly 322 steps up to this floor.

Oh, Miles, no.

Sure, Mr. Mason. It's true.

All right, Miles.

Now it's time to go home with your Aunt Sylvia.

Sure, I know that.

We're having apple turnover.

But she can wait in the car, can't she?

Mr. Drake said it was all right.

Oh?

What's all this about?

Oh, just a little bet, Perry. That's all.

See how many steps you count going down the fire stairs.